Port Lympne Safari Park

You drive through the Kent countryside near Hythe and suddenly there's a giraffe wandering past the car window. Port Lympne Safari Park is one of those attractions that doesn't quite prepare you for how surreal it feels - real animals roaming freely while you motor slowly through their enclosures. It's part zoo, part drive-through experience, and it works better than you'd think.

The setup is straightforward: you pay for entry, get in your car (or hop on the open-sided train if you haven't got wheels), and wind through various sections seeing giraffes, zebras, rhinoceros, antelopes and plenty more African wildlife. There's also a walk-through section with smaller animals and birds if you want to stretch your legs. Kids absolutely lap it up - there's something properly thrilling about having a giraffe lean down towards your window. Adults find it entertaining too, though it's not exactly challenging viewing.

Allow three to four hours if you're doing the full lot. It gets busy on school holidays, so go mid-week if possible. Parking at the site is generous, which helps. The whole operation is run by the Aspinall Foundation, so there's genuine conservation work happening behind the scenes.

For a caravan holiday in the area, it slots neatly between Daleacres Campsite just down the road and New Beach Holiday Park near Greatstone. It's the sort of thing that fills a rainy afternoon or breaks up a week's coastal exploring. Worth a few hours, though not a reason to base your entire trip around it.